Sports

Brush bats show promise in first two rounds of the state tournament

Beetdiggers advance to state semifinals for third straight year

By Brandon Boles

Times Sports Reporter

Posted:
10/20/2017 05:13:02 PM MDT

Brush senior Sydney Odle (left) dives into third base while trying to avoid the tag from a University defender in the quarterfinals of the 3A state softball tournament on Friday, Oct. 20, 2017. (Brandon Boles / Fort Morgan Times)

AURORA — Offense was the theme in practice leading up to the 3A state softball tournament for the No. 1 seed Brush Beetdiggers.

It took only one game to see the hard work in practice continue onto the field for the game.

Brush scored in all four innings they batted and won its first round game over the No. 16 seed Fort Lupton Blue Devils 16-3 Friday morning to advance to the 3A state quarterfinals Friday afternoon.

"We can't underestimate teams based on their rankings," Allie Christensen said. "We just have to come in here and take care of business."

The Beetdiggers loaded the bases in the first inning and scored on an error to take the lead. With two outs and the bases still loaded, Christensen took a pitch to right field for a two-out, two-run single. Kendall Elliott followed with her own two-run single to give Brush a 5-0 lead going into the second inning.

Kamryn Leoffler, who would finish 4-4 with four runs and three RBI's in the win, drove in the first run of the second inning with a double. She would score on an RBI triple from Maddy Rule two batters later. A ground ball from Mady Griffith and an RBI double from Christensen saw Brush finish the second inning with four runs and a 9-0 lead.

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Fort Lupton found some life on a couple of pitches from Hailey Unrein that hit too much of the plate in the third inning. A two-run home run and a solo shot cut the lead down to 9-3.

Those would be the only runs Fort Lupton would put on the board in the game. Meanwhile, the Brush offense stayed hot the rest of the game to secure the win.

Brush got the three runs back with RBI singles by Leoffler and Rule and another fielder's choice for Griffith that scored a run. Unrein retired Fort Lupton quickly in the top of the fourth to bring the hot offense back up quickly. Elliott drove in her third run with a sac fly to give the Beetdiggers a double-digit lead and the team would score three more runs on two base hits and a double steal.

"We're finally hitting through the lineup and for the whole game, not just for an inning," Christensen said. "It was mental for us. We just had to go up and have the same confidence we always walk up with."

Eight of the nine hitters for Brush combined for 15 hits and five players scored multiple runs in the win. The Beetdiggers would then face the No. 9 seed University Bulldogs in the quarterfinals after they beat Weld Central 14-9 in the first round.

"It's tough to beat a team three times in one year," Christensen said. "We can't change our approach. We have to keep up with this offensive success we had."

Early in the game, University proved they would be a tough draw for Brush. The Bulldogs got three runs in the first inning and took control of the game early.

Rather than getting their heads down, the team showed their composure to battle back.

Leoffler and Griffith drove in a run each in the bottom first to cut the lead to 3-2. Another RBI from Leoffler in the second inning tied the game, but the team was unable to take advantage of a bases-loaded situation to take the lead. When University regained the lead in the third inning, Brush tied it up again with an RBI hit from Elliott.

"I was nervous when we were down 3-0, but these girls never got nervous," coach Tom Odle said. "They battled and did things to change the angle of the game. They are willing to pick each other up."

The first lead for Brush came in the fourth inning when Rule hit a single to score a run. She would score in the next at-bat when Griffith hit her first home run of the season to put Brush in front 7-4. A shutout inning pitched from Unrein in the top of the fifth got the team back to the plate quickly and resulted in an RBI single from Brooklynn Cox.

Brush would score in all but one inning in both games combined on Friday, showing signs that the team is ready to break out the way they expect to offensively this weekend.

"We're getting closer," Odle said. "We have made some adjustments. The girls have been working hard. We still haven't played the Brush game offensively yet, but we still have two more games to go."

University threatened in the top of the seventh with the bases loaded and two outs, but Unrein got a big strikeout to end the game and advance the Beetdiggers to the semifinals.

On Saturday, Brush will play No. 5 seed Faith Christian in the semifinals at 10 a.m. The winner will face either No. 2 seed Eaton or No. 3 seed Strasburg in the championship game at 12:15 p.m. Odle said he and his team are confident in taking the final step to reach the state championship game this weekend.

"These girls do not like to lose and that's great to have as a coach," Odle said. "We know Faith Christian from earlier. We have to take care of business with them and then we'll focus on the championship game."

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